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Sunday, July 16, 2017

" MATH GENIUS " - MARYAM MIRZAKHANI DIES AT AN EARLY AGE OF 40 YEARS - SHE TOUCHED MANY LIVES - CONTRIBUTED HER BEST TO THE WORLD OF MATHEMATICS.

Maryham Mirzakhani -

first woman to win the coveted Fields Medal.

1977 - 2017

Maryham Mirzakhani left this Earth - at an early age of 40 years - she died from breast cancer.She leaves behind her husband Jan Vondrak and a daughter named Anahita - numerous others - family, friends, supporters, students, - others she touched - all admired her - genius.In 2014 - Maryham Mirzakhani won the Fields Medal - the equivalent of the Nobel Prize for mathematics - awarded by the International Congress of Mathematicians.Born in 1977 and raised in Tehran - Maryham attended an all girls high school and then studied at Tehran's Sharif University.Maryham forte in the fields of geometry and dynamical systems - particularly in understanding the symmetry of curved surfaces such as spheres - brought her work nearer to the limelight of pure mathematics.Pure mathematics is not for the faint of heart - one can delve into a " situation " - often taking months and even years - a maze of puzzles lead to solutions - bringing one closer to the solution - until one day - a moment arrives - the mathematician - solves the problem. Mathematicians wait for such moments.At other times their work lead to discoveries - one of a kind - bring about progressive in scientific fields - buildings, engineering, science at its best and more.

Maryam Mirzakhani

I have some friends who are mathematicians - and understand more - why many of them are so focused - and so far away - from mundane issues.

They delve deep into a world - that only few know about - because that journey is long - and often times they are alone - until they see the light - at the end of the tunnel.

At times we have seen some of them women and men work as a team - as in the movie " Hidden Figures ". The central figure a Black woman - Katherine Johnson - who helped put the first American in space - John Glen orbiting the Earth.Katherine Johnson - a Black woman mathematician - who only recently has been acknowledged.I am sure and confident that the passing of Maryam Mirzakhani - will shed light on many mathematical solutions.That this light will illumine many bright minds - to work as a team - putting aside parochial mundane issues - that create divisiveness - instead of unity and progress - bring people together.

In 2008 Maryam Mirzakhani joined Stanford University in California - the United States of America - as a professor of Mathematics.

She leaves behind her husband - Jan Vondrak also a mathematics researcher at Stanford - and a daughter Anahita.My sincere deep condolences to the family and loved ones.

I have many Iranian friends - and felt that I should contribute this article on my blog - my little way of appreciating the deep friendship of the many Iranians I have befriended all these many years.

I visited many towns and Tehran in the 1970s - while the Shah of Iran was ruling - Mohammad Reza Shah Pahlavi.

I have found memories of that trip on my way by land to Europe.

Rest in Peace -this Earth is a better place -because of your light and presenceGod bless your soulwe all shall treasure your contribution to the world.